


To Zero

by petitluna



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Depression, Eventual Smut, Heavy Angst, Levi is Eren's tutor, Levi/Eren Yeager-centric, M/M, Murder Mystery, Organized Crime, Self-Harm, Slow Burn, Tutoring, bcuz my babies deserve happiness ;-;, depressing shit with an eventual happy ending, sort of inspired by Dengeki Daisy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-06
Updated: 2016-08-06
Packaged: 2018-07-29 16:21:54
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death, Underage
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,992
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7691377
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/petitluna/pseuds/petitluna
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>High school student Eren Jaeger's perfect life was turned upside down following his mother's mysterious death and his father's sudden disappearance. What he doesn't realize, is that he may be in danger as well. Luckily, he has someone watching over him: a man who goes by the name of Zero. The only thing is, Eren doesn't know Zero's identity, as their communication is strictly via text messaging. But, Eren has grown to trust Zero more than anyone he's known in his life. Another thing Eren doesn't know, is that Zero is none other than his new English tutor, a grumpy man named Levi, who Eren likes to refer to as an asshole.</p>
            </blockquote>





	To Zero

**Author's Note:**

> This is going to be one angst-filled fic, which I've been wanting to do in contrast to my other fic I've been working on, which is the complete opposite :^) This is going to be another long-term project, and my initial inspiration for this came from the manga, Dengeki Daisy. Rated E for later chapters, which I will mention. Not sure yet how often I'll be updating, since my current priority is my Voltron fic. 
> 
> Enjoy~

“Um, what happened to Miss Ral?”

“Quit. I’ll be your new tutor.”

“Oh.”

Eren stared out the half-blinded window, dark clouds beginning to crowd the dull gray sky outside. Once more, he had barely slept through the night. Perhaps four three at most. He wasn’t sure if his mind could bare through the two hour lesson. 

“Let’s start with your homework from last session.”

“Right.” 

Eren glanced at the man sitting beside him. His new tutor. The man looked fairly young, similar to most of the tutors at the center. However, his tired eyes stood out in contrast to his youthful features. Furrowed brows, thin lips, jet-black hair, a defined jaw structure. It wasn’t certain whether he was freshly shaven or rather didn’t grow facial hair. 

“What’s with the stare, kid?” 

“Ah, sorry,” Eren apologized, turning his attention to the workbook pages he had just opened to. 

The man took the workbook from Eren and his eyes scanned the two pages in silence. Eren couldn’t help but open his mouth to break the silence. Miss Ral was always particularly chatty. And silence wasn’t something Eren could typically stand for long, especially with a stranger. 

“What’s your name?”

Silence. 

“U-um, sorry, but you didn’t tell me your name.”

“Huh?” The man looked up from the workbook. 

“It’s just that, I’m not sure what I should call you, since you’re my new tutor.”

“Levi.”

Eren simply nodded and returned his attention to the window, wondering how he’d be able to make it home if it began to rain. Afterall, the rubber of his left windshield wiper fell off just a few days prior. 

“You missed half of them.”

“Oh. Sorry, I had-”

“No excuses. While I’m your tutor, there won’t be excuses, alright?”

Eren studied Levi’s face more closely, now that he was looking directly at him. Despite the unusual tiredness that surrounded his narrow eyes, he finally noticed the striking color they presented. Two orbs of piercing gray. Eren diverted his gaze. 

“Yes, sir.” 

“Alright, since you missed nearly every single question of part one, let’s redo it. I want you to re-read and mark this passage and let me know when you are finished.” 

Eren nodded and proceeded to re-read the literary passage on the page. Levi had already read the passage. More than once. Perhaps ten times, considering he repeatedly used the same workbook to teach his other students. 

While Eren studied the passage, Levi studied Eren. Unkempt hair, tanned skin, slightly large ears. He noticed calluses at the tips of each finger as Eren worked his pencil, underlining particular points and making marginal notes as he read through the passage. His eyes, though, were most appealing. Such a peculiar color. Not entirely green, but not entirely blue. 

“Done.” Eren looked up at Levi, gently pushing the workbook in his direction for review. 

“So, tell me what you understand about this passage.”

“Um, well it’s talking about a girl who spends every summer at a certain beach.”

“And?”

“And? Uh…” 

“Why is this important?”

“I don’t really understand what you mean,” Eren admitted. He didn’t know why, but every time Levi looked at him, he felt uncomfortable. Every time he looked at him, he felt his mind go blank. 

“It’s not just a matter of knowing what the passage is about. It’s a matter of knowing its significance. What is the purpose of this passage? Why did the author write it? What is the author trying to accomplish? Those are all things you should be asking yourself as you read these passages.” 

“Well, the girl is reminiscing, isn’t she?”

“So, what of it?” 

“So, the author is probably trying to make the reader understand that this is an important memory to this character.” Eren tried to maintain his focus on Levi without looking away. 

“There’s still a point that you’re missing. Just because the author is giving us a memory, doesn’t necessarily mean the memory itself is important. Rather, think of what the author is trying to tell us about the character through this memory. The memory, in this case, is just a tool.”

“So...the author’s using it because…”

“Because the girl is independent, and instead of spoon-feeding information to us about the character, the author decides to _show_ us.”

“Oh…”

Levi sighed. 

“Let’s move on. I want you to now to summarize the main idea of each paragraph, then you may attempt the questions.”

“Seriously?” Eren protested. 

“Do I look like I’m joking?”

Eren was too tired for this. He barely made it through the school day, and now he had to deal with this. At least Petra was always warm and understanding. This guy? He was going to be a real pain, wasn’t he. 

 

\---

 

Somehow Eren had managed to make it through the remaining session. The evening air was cold as he opened the door to the outside, but he was free from the temporary hell schooling and tutoring provided. Water droplets fell onto his face, and he silently cursed to himself. The walk home was not going to be fun. 

He was walking along the dark and empty city streets for a couple blocks when the light showers turned into a downpour. As Eren began to curse to himself once more, an old Volvo pulled up next to him against the sidewalk, windshield wipers sweeping away furiously at the rain. The window rolled down, revealing his perfectly-kempt tutor. 

“Hey, kid! The hell is wrong with you?”

“My car wipers are broken,” Eren shouted back. 

“Get in!”

Without protest, Eren got into the passenger side of Levi’s car. Despite the awkward feeling of sharing a car with his uptight tutor, he’d much rather suffer through that than the near-freezing bite of the rain. 

“There’s a big storm coming in, you know. You’re crazy to be walking out there,” Levi scolded.

“Like I said, my car wipers are broken.”

“I heard you the first time, brat. Where do you live?”

“The neighborhood on Maria and Rose.” Eren chose to ignore the fact that Levi had just called him a brat, too tired to argue with anyone, let alone his tutor. 

“Of course you do.” Levi gave a dry laugh. 

“What the hell is that supposed to mean?”

“Afterall, only the wealthiest little shits in this town can afford that tutoring center.”

“I...guess,” Eren agreed. He couldn’t deny that his parents gave him only the best education and resources to succeed. He couldn’t deny that he came from a family of money. 

The rest of the ride was uncomfortably silent. The only sound came from the low volume of Levi’s car radio, playing through three classic rock songs before reaching Eren’s house. 

“You can just pull up here.” Eren pointed to the roundabout driveway in front of the closed gate.

“Alright. See you Friday.” 

“Yeah.” Eren turned back once more before exiting the vehicle. “Thanks.”

 

\---

 

Eren spent the rest of the night relaxing in his bedroom and talking to, rather messaging, Zero. Zero was someone who Eren had been communicating with for over a year now. It started right after Eren’s mother had passed and his father had disappeared. 

 

_“You don’t know me, but you can call me Zero. I’m a friend of your family, and due to recent events, I’ve been asked to check on you regularly. It’s nice to meet you Eren.”_

_“I’m confused. Why do I need to be checked on?”_

_“I cannot tell you, exactly. But I would like you to trust me. It was your father’s idea.”_

_“What about Mikasa?”_

_“She is fine, since she is away at boarding school.”_

_“And I’m not fine?”_

_“I don’t think you are.”_

 

Since that day, Eren didn’t go a day without talking to Zero. Maybe it was because he was lonely. Maybe it was because Zero had been right since the beginning: he wasn’t fine, and he hadn’t been since his parents left. Since then, Eren had been alone in the large house that was left behind for him. 

Mikasa, his adoptive sister, was away studying at a prestigious all-girls school, and only came to visit a couple times per month. She hated the distance, and the fact that she couldn’t stay with Eren. But, it was their parents’ request, and the siblings promised to respect their parents’ wishes. It was the least they could do. 

Armin, Eren’s best friend, came over so often, he practically lived there. Eren was incredibly grateful for Armin, and couldn’t imagine his life, or the past year especially, without him. However, Armin couldn’t be there all the time, and it was those times when Eren needed Zero the most. Eren had grown very attached to Zero, despite not knowing his identity. Eren didn’t know what Zero looked like, where he lived, how old he was, or even what he sounded like. Hell, he didn’t even know if “Zero” was his real name. All of their communication occurred through text messages. In the beginning, Eren found it somewhat shady, but as time went on, he found himself opening up to Zero in ways he had never opened up to anyone before, not even Armin. It was then that Eren realized he didn’t need to know who Zero was, as long as he had him. He thought that, perhaps, because he didn’t know Zero, it was easier to let everything out. Because he didn’t know Zero, he didn’t need to filter his thoughts or emotions. He could say or reveal whatever he wanted, and Zero would still be there, because that was his job. 

Eren sent Zero a text as soon as he was relaxed in his bed.

Eren: I got a new tutor today

Zero responded within seconds.

Zero: Yeah? How was it?

Eren: Shitty. He seems like a hard-ass, but he drove me home, which was nice I guess…

Zero: Oh, why’d he drive you home?

Eren: Remember I mentioned the rubber part of my windshield wiper came off? It was raining today so I couldn’t exactly drive home..

Zero: Ah. Well, that was nice of him

Eren: Yea. But whatever. I’m tired as fuck but I don’t think I’ll be able to sleep again tonight

Zero: Eren, you need sleep.

Eren: What if I don’t wanna? 

Zero: Eren…

Eren: But really. I can’t help that I have insomnia

Zero: Please go to a doctor. I’ve been asking you for months now

Eren: I don’t need meds. I’d rather be awake. Sleeping is scary

Eren wasn’t lying. He had barely gone a night without having some sort of nightmare this past year. Every night was another hell. Being awake, he found, was just a bit less painful. 

Zero: I know. I have nightmares too.

Eren: What are your nightmares about?

Zero: Just things about my past. Guilt. Things I can’t change. Things I’ll always regret

Eren: I keep seeing their faces

Zero: I know

Eren: I just want it to stop. When will it stop?

Zero: If I could make it stop, I would. I swear I would, Eren.

Tears escaped the corners of his eyes at Zero’s words. There was only one night this week that Eren hadn’t cried himself to sleep. It was the same almost every week. With this routine, the skin surrounding his eyes was raw and irritated. Every time he cried, it burned. 

Eren: I wish I could see you Zero

Zero: I know

Eren: Will I ever see you?

Zero: Maybe one day

Eren: That’s what you always say

Zero: Don’t worry, Eren. Even if you can’t see me, I’m always here. I always will be, I swear it

Eren: I still wish that I can see you one day

Zero: I’m not that great of a person, Eren

Eren: I think you are

Zero: I’m not. I promise

Eren: You are to me. So stop saying stuff like that

Zero: Whatever you say, Eren

Once again, Eren found it impossible to sleep that night.


End file.
